Wisdom of Crowds

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveWhy is Trump such a formidable candidate, despite everything? How can someone who lies so readily be seen as authentic? With the Republican presidential campaign heating up, Sam Adler-Bell—co-host of “Know Your Enemy” and one of the most fascinating leftist writers around today—returns to the podcast to argue that Trump has something special that Ron DeSantis doesn’t have and likely never will. Pundits often argue that DeSantis represents a stable and “competent” version of Trump that can win the presidency for the GOP. Sam disagrees. DeSantis, he argues, is reflective of a well-educated elite bumbling to co-opt Trump’s style without understanding the former president’s essence. Not only that, DeSantis may even be a “technocrat,” that dreaded word. Sam makes the case that Trump’s conning authenticity, charm—but especially his “anti-competence” and distinct resentment of elitism and expertise—help explain his staying power.In the full episode (for paying subscribers only), the three discuss the rampant apocalypticism of the current moment and how Republicans and Democrats leverage the premise that the end is near. Damir posits that the doomerism may be justified whereas Shadi is more cautiously optimistic. Also, Sam discusses the discipline required—as someone on the political left—to not define one’s politics around the most annoying features of one’s opponents. Required Reading:* Sam Adler Bell’s must-listen podcast “Know Your Enemy” with Matthew Sitman on the intellectual origins of the American Right. * Sam’s epic first appearance on Wisdom of Crowds, discussing the New Right.* The classic “Know Your Enemy” episode on Nixon’s resentments and obsessions.* “The One Thing Trump Has That DeSantis Never Will,” by Sam Adler-Bell (The New York Times).* “The Jeffrey Epstein case is why people believe in Pizzagate,” by Matthew Walther. (The Week).* Dave Chappelle monologue on Trump’s appealing hypocrisy (Saturday Night Live).* The Confidence Man, by Herman Melville (Amazon).* Chris Christie takes down Marco Rubio in 2016 (CBS News).* Trump Inaugural Address, “American Carnage” (ABC News).* “The Humiliation Factor,” by Thomas Friedman (The New York Times).

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveAn anti-natalist subculture has flourished for years online. These days, it feels like it’s taking hold in the real world.This week, writer and internet historian Katherine Dee and Editor-at-Large Christine Emba join Shadi and Damir to make sense of this underground phenomenon—and its broader implications for how we live today.Do people really believe that suffering makes life not worth experiencing? And what is the source of the breathtaking idea that one can and should spare the unborn the pain of existence?As the conversation continues, the Crowd starts to zero in on the source of the problem: there’s something unhealthy about being online all the time. Katherine reveals her struggles with climate anxiety, and how she eventually snapped out of it.In the full episode (for paying subscribers only), the conversation turns to the identities we inhabit online and in-person, and how that causes us to lose our ethical moorings. Katherine points out that detachment and anonymity afforded by the internet breeds isolation and existential dread. Is there a remedy to this “psychosis”? Closing up, we hit on a cheeky solution.Required Reading:- “We Need to Talk About Extreme Anti-Natalism,” by Katherine Dee (Unherd).- “Can You Pair-Bond During Cybersex?” by Katherine Dee (Substack).- “Computer Love,” by Katherine Dee (Comment).- “Tumblr Transformed American Politics,” by Katherine Dee (American Conservative).- Rethinking Sex: AProvocation, by Christine Emba (Amazon).

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveWith the world feeling increasingly unstable, Damir and Shadi turn to foreign policy. Can the United States can back its bluster abroad, including in defense of Taiwan? All of this is happening as Donald Trump re-enters the national spotlight. The guys contrast the former president's manic approach to deterrence with the current and preceding administrations. Shadi is comforted the White House is staffed by vaguely smart and competent people, but thinks there may be something to Trump's saber-rattling.Damir then challenges Shadi on the Biden Administration's democracy versus autocracy approach to foreign policy. How do we understand Brazil's democratically elected president willingly embracing China?In the full episode (for paying subscribers only), Damir makes the case for how we might not go to war with China over Taiwan, while Shadi wonders whether Trump's madman routine may have been more effective than we dare imagine.Required Reading:- Tucker Carlson interview with Donald Trump.- China After Mao: The Rise of a Superpower, by Frank Dikotter (Amazon).- "Blinken: I press Saudis on LGBTQI issues ‘in every conversation’" (Politico).- "The West hoped Lula would be a partner. He’s got his own plans" (WaPo).- "When might US political support be unwelcome in Taiwan?", by Alastair Iain Johnston, Tsai Chia-hung, and George Yin (Brookings Institution).

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveWith artificial intelligence threatening to take over our imaginations, Shadi and Damir this week decided to talk through some of the philosophical quandaries with none other than political philosopher and Wisdom of Crowds contributing writer Samuel Kimbriel. The Crowd takes on ChatGPT, existential risk, "the simulation", navigating uncertainty and whether we can know what is real.After a recent encounter with ChatGPT, Damir is impressed that AI is now well on its way to modeling language, an advancement he thinks could upend the elite publishing world. On the potential existential threat posed by AI, Shadi's faith leaves him less than panicked about technological doomsday. Meanwhile, Sam reminds us that humanity lives in a state of uncertainty subject to inquiry which can breed distrust with political institutions that insist they have it all figured out.In the full episode (for paying subscribers only) Damir and Sam differ on whether ChatGPT is a new version of an old mechanism or whether it's something more sophisticated. Shadi asks whether such a technology can ever feel longing, wistfulness, and regret. How do we seek to understand human consciousness let alone that of artificial intelligence? A rich conversation ensues.Required Reading:- "You’re Better Off Not Knowing," by Shadi Hamid (The Atlantic).- "ChatGPT and Me," by Damir Marusic. (Wisdom of Crowds).- "Why I Am Not (As Much Of) A Doomer (As Some People)," by Scott Alexander (Substack).- A very politically incorrect tweet about ChatGPT and Joe Biden.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.live With Ron DeSantis embracing an aggressively illiberal agenda of cultural reaction, how worried should we be? This week on the podcast, The New Republic's Osita Nwanevu—one of the most original leftist thinkers working today—joined us to debate the future of the Republican Party and the dangers of 2024. Very quickly, the conversation morphed into a spirited exchange on whether it's American institutions—or the madness of crowds—that explains the GOP's sharp turn to the right on questions of culture and identity. Osita argues that the GOP as an institution is dangerous. It has taken advantage of existing political institutions to promote anti-democratic values and rule as a minoritarian party even as it claims to represent the views and grievances of a sometimes silent majority. We also discuss whether Republican messaging against "wokeness" is truly a winning issue with voters—and what this says for prospects of an outright GOP victory in 2024.   (And, yes: we also touched on Osita's preference that the U.S. Constitution be abolished.) In Part 2 (available here for subscribers), Damir sets out a dark theory. Could the arrival of true mass democracy, where social media makes everyone far too interested in politics, actually be encouraging demagoguery? And can a democratic system withstand repeated assaults by such unscrupulous political entrepreneurs? Shadi's more optimistic on balance, seeing conflict as a sign of democratic health. And Osita sticks to his institutionalist guns. Believe it or not, the episode ends on a cautious note of optimism. Required Reading: "Trump has a better shot at the Republican nomination than people realize," by Osita Nwanevu (Guardian). "The Constitution is the Crisis," by Osita Nwanevu (New Republic). "DeSantis Derangement Syndrome and the Return of Mass Panic," by Shadi Hamid (Substack). "My Fellow Liberals Are Exaggerating the Dangers of Ron DeSantis," by Damon Linker (NYT). "Ron DeSantis is Not a Fascist," by Damon Linker (Substack)

This week, we're bringing you something special: our first recording with a live audience! Hosted by the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Governance and Markets and moderated by the center's director, Jen Murtazashvili (a friend of the Crowd), we had a freewheeling discussion about Shadi's new book, The Problem of Democracy.Shadi made his case for decoupling democracy and liberalism—what he calls "democratic minimalism." Instead of viewing democracy as a means to other ends, it should be seen an end unto itself. In other words, let us lower expectations and like (and perhaps even love) democracy for its more modest pleasures. Democracy is not about delivering economic growth, competence, or consensus. And it may even produce the opposite.The argument, expressed in its more provocative form, is that democracy is about a way of making choices, while liberalism is one choice among many. Citizens in conservative societies may choose otherwise—including by passing restrictions on abortion, alcohol consumption, and even "blasphemy laws" that prohibit insulting divine texts and prophets.Losing no time, Damir and Jen (and audience members) pose a series of challenges to Shadi's idiosyncratic view of democracy. Is this minimalistic conception of democracy realistic, even if it were desirable? Jen thinks that there needs to be a classically liberal limited state whereas Damir isn't so sure that ethnically and religiously divided countries are places where democracy flourishes. Is it enough to simply ask citizens to accept democratic outcomes not to their liking? Or must there be a deeper, shared cultural bond before anything else?On foreign policy, things get even more thorny. Can the United States truly promote democracy without doing damage to its own national security interests? The problem is that reasonable observers no longer agree, if they ever did, on which vital interests are, in fact, "vital." And, if America is a superpower, presumably it could absorb the costs of a democracy-first policy in the Middle East if it really wanted to.As the event became more of a free-for-all, extending into 2 hours of spirited exchanges with the audience, the crowd debated sharia courts, India under Modi, whether Obama actually had a dislike for Muslims, whether Israel was the ideal "illiberal democracy", what making America "more democratic" means, and the resiliency of American institutions over the last six years.Required Reading: - The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East, and the Rise and Fall of an Idea, by Shadi Hamid (Amazon).- Jen Murtazashvili’s personal website.- The Center for Governance and Markets at Pitt.- Full YouTube video of this conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wisdomofcrowds.live/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveThis week, we were excited to have author Luke Burgis on the pod, to talk about a hot topic: desire. Specifically, mimetic desire—the idea that desires are often generated through our human propensity to copy each other. He's written an excellent book, Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life, that affected both of us deeply.First theorized by the French philosopher Rene Girard, and present in everything from The White Lotus to the writings of Peter Thiel, mimetic desire is everywhere around us.We talked about how to identify the power of mimetic desire in our society: in ever more adversarial politics, in an economy increasingly focused on attention, and especially in social-media-mediated quests for collective scapegoats (Shadi shares how he became a scapegoat for Philadelphia sports fans last week).We discussed if it was possible to ever break the cycle of scapegoating, and how knowledge of this dynamic should change how we view politics. What does it mean to be a "political atheist," as Girard, a Catholic, called himself? And is Damir going to Hell?In the full episode (for paying subscribers only), we also pondered what the more pessimistic conclusions of the theory of mimetic desire might be. What does it mean that societies are to some extent bound to engage in cycles of mimetic imitation, rivalry, and scapegoating? Do citizens in democracies really deliberate rationally, or are they just following the leader? Is Shadi's insistence that democracy is an end in itself in peril?We closed by asking what implications this could all have for our personal lives. How can we determine which of our desires are "thin"—mimetically taken from others—or "thick"—coming from a deep sense of self? Do we have to consciously restrain our own choices? And what might our lives look like if we regain our sense of self-possession?Required Reading:- Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life, by Luke Burgis (Amazon).- Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World, by Rene Girard (Amazon).- Shadi’s bad sports tweet.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveIn recent months, Shadi has drawn a lot of online ire for saying that liberals were needlessly (and harmfully) catastrophizing ahead of the November midterms. We decided to talk to one of Shadi's smartest and most eloquent critics on this count—our friend Damon Linker, a former columnist at The Week and current author of the excellent Substack, Eyes on the Right.We argue about what's "normal" polarization, and what arguments end up making democracy less workable. Is Shadi really too complacent, or is he just being prudent? Is the Muslim Brotherhood "better" on democracy than the GOP? And why does the center-left have a newfound respect for military and intelligence agencies?In the full episode (for paying subscribers only) Shadi shares some insights gleaned while attending a far-right birthday party (don't ask). Why does the new generation of young conservatives feel so alienated from American politics, and can their grievances ever be accommodated? What can we learn from populist victories in Israel and Hungary? And can a convincing Ron DeSantis victory be the best thing that could happen to us in 2024?Required Reading:- “The ‘Democracy Panic’ of 2022 Was Fully Justified,” by Damon Linker (Eyes on the Right).- Our first podcast with Damon, “Reassessing the Reactionary Right.”- Fiona Hill’s podcast with us.- “General Milley says he wasn’t trying to undermine Trump in China Call,” by Teaganne Finne (NBC News).

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveThis was one of the richest conversations we've recorded in a while. Our guest this week is Robert Nicholson, the founder of The Philos Project, an organization that promotes Christian engagement with the Middle East, and host of The Deep Map, a new podcast that explores the religious and historical roots of conflict in the region.We asked Robert about what he thinks Westerners misunderstand the most about Middle Eastern politics: the role religion does, and doesn't play in the region's conflicts. Will countries need to craft collective identities that rise above religion for societies to progress? Robert thinks that goal is wildly unrealistic, and not even necessarily desirable.Veering from from minimal democracy to forced population transfers, the conversation only gets more contentious—and weirdly philosophical—from there.In the full episode (for paying subscribers only) Damir tries to push Shadi's fundamental commitments to a breaking point. If democratic minimalism requires that we respect the basic outcomes of the democratic process, then why should we be particularly concerned about illiberalism in Middle Eastern countries (or France, for that matter)? What higher principles can we appeal to, other than notions of liberal universalism that voters in the Middle East may not respect? And finally, we close out the discussion by asking Robert about the incoming Israeli coalition government—and the likelihood of things getting seriously ugly on the ground in the coming months.Required Reading:- Shadi’s appearance on Robert’s podcast, The Deep Map.- “Benjamin Netanyahu: What Drives Israel’s Incoming Prime Minister?” by Michah Goodman (The Jerusalem Post).- The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East and the Rise and Fall of an Idea, by Shadi Hamid (Amazon).- The Mossawa Center, an advocacy organization for Arab citizens in Israel.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit wisdomofcrowds.liveThe boys are back in town! Damir is back from yet another globetrotting trip, so the Crowd is returning to podcasting after a brief hiatus. Beginning with Kanye West's recent antisemitic interview with Alex Jones and dinner with Donald Trump, we discussed the success Democrats have had with pinning crazy candidates and viewpoints on the GOP. Shadi is concerned that overheated rhetoric about the death of democracy may be harmful in the long run, while Damir, ever the cynic, is impressed by the dirty politics.Of course, propping up crackpot candidates in a primary so that they can be beaten in the general election is a risky maneuver. Will covertly helping Donald Trump stay in the race invite divine judgement? Less theologically, how many people who seriously believed rhetoric about encroaching fascism will ever let that belief go? Shadi and Damir consider whether the "split personality" created by lives lived increasingly online leads to belief in outlandish, alarmist claims.In the full episode (for paying subscribers only), Shadi, on a characteristically theological tangent, wonders what Heaven will be like. Will we be able to know the deepest thoughts of our friends and acquaintances? Will we even have the identities and selves that we do now?Damir, also considering a (relatively) "undiscovered country" fills the Crowd in on his recent trip to Japan. What about Japan do Westerners not understand? Is it a modern, "Western" country, or some other, stranger, form of modernity. And are the media's representations of Japan as a deeply dysfunctional society all that accurate?Required Reading:- “Can You Pair Bond During Cybersex?” by Katherine Dee (Default Friend).- “Why Liberals Should Support a Trump Republican Nomination,” by Jonathan Chait (New York Magazine).- Patrick Stewart’s scene with Ricky Gervais on Extras.